Washington Fish and Wildlife Department
A man in Oregon has been arrested after he uploaded videos of himself fishing for protected sharks and wrestling them on land.
There are plenty of protected species of animals across the world that hunters and fishermen can’t go anywhere near. If they do, they risk massive fines, jail time, being banned from certain areas, and having their fishing licenses revoked.
Over in Tacoma, Washington, 27-year-old fisherman Connor Seifert has come under fire for catching protected species of sharks. The 27-year-old had uploaded videos of himself catching the sixgill and sevengill sharks from Seattle’s Puget Sound before also wrestling them too.
In the videos, Seifert was seen holding the sharks’ mouths open, which can cause breathing issues for them, and affect any breeding that may be going on.
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On July 23, Washington Fish and Wildlife Department announced that Seifert had been arrested by officers after months of investigations into his activity, catching him and his friends “dragging a six-gill out of the water for a trophy photo” before releasing it.
“In total, nine counts of unlawful recreational fishing in the second degree (a misdemeanor) and one count of making a false or misleading statement to a public servant (a gross misdemeanor) were filed in Pierce County,” they said.
“Each misdemeanor charge carries up to a $1,000 fine and up to 90 days in jail, and the gross misdemeanor carries up to a $5,000 fine and up to one year in jail.”
The Fish and Wildlife department also noted that there had been 14 complaints about Seifert. “Many of the complaints had stemmed from the suspect’s social media platform that included photos and videos of illegal sixgill and sevengill being caught and handled,” they added.
As they noted, Seifert could face up to just over three years in jail, if he is served with the maximum amount of time available on the charges.
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According to court records, the 27-year-old has pleaded not guilty to the charges, and is due back in court in August.
